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Action research communities for language teachers

The goal of action research communities for language teachers is to contribute towards quality enhancement in the language classroom through the application of action research approaches. This will be achieved by tapping into existing networks with a view to creating new learning communities, which can be replicated across ECML member states. Read more

RATIONALE

The project aims to strengthen professional networks by linking academic expertise on action research and good practice in the language classroom. The goal is to contribute to the improvement of language education by giving teachers across Europe better access to action research and new perspectives on languages methodologies.

Teachers who carry out action research in the classroom confirm that it leads to a better understanding of teaching methodologies and of the different ways in which learners learn.

Action research enables teachers to reflect on their practice and to propose and test innovations. Moreover, undertaking action research within a community of practice with direct links to academic research provides a sound base for applying the results and helps develop professional self-confidence.

The objectives are to:

design action research tools which not only help improve the quality of teaching and learning but also help foster dialogues between teachers, heads of departments, administrators & teacher educators.

demonstrate how research can feed into practice and practice into research.

show why undertaking action research is beneficial to teachers and learners, through a series of success stories in different languages.

create European models for peer learning activities which can be also be implemented at national/school level.

This project is about making techniques for action research widely available through the establishment of a community of practice, bringing together newly qualified teachers, experienced teachers, teacher trainers and university researchers.

INNOVATION

Action research communities for language teachers will connect action research and a culture of quality within an international network and initiate and support dialogues between all concerned in the field of languages education.

Action research communities for language teachers will use languages as a base for working with other disciplines, demonstrating that language learning does not only take place in the language classroom. Language learning is an integral element of every subject, every professional field and every learning situation. The ideas will be further disseminated through presentations at general action research conferences.

Who will benefit from the project?

Teachers are at the heart of the quality process in the language learning classroom. This project will support teachers in European classrooms in using action research as an essential tool for the development of reflective classroom practice highlighting ways in which teachers can enhance their self-confidence and professionalism.
This in turn will improve the quality of their teaching and at the same time strengthen teacher confidence.

Envisaged outputs

Guidelines for action research and for networking strategies towards quality enhancement in language teaching;

A practical guide to action research for teachers and teacher educators based on experiences from the ECML countries;

Take part in the ARC webinar on Friday 25 January 16:00 - 17:30 CET

Registration: (in order to take part you need to register (see below). You will then receive the link to participate in the webinar. A maximum of 150 persons can register)

Languages: The webinar will be in English

The European Centre for Modern Languages project “Action research communities for language teachers” (ARC) has supported teachers in European classrooms in using action research as an essential tool for the development of reflective classroom practice - highlighting ways in which teachers can enhance their self-confidence and professionalism. The 90-minute webinar will provide an insight into the experiences gathered over the 3 years of the project (2016-18) and the present the results achieved.

The goal of ARC has been to contribute towards quality enhancement in the language classroom through the application of action research approaches by tapping into existing networks with a view to creating new learning communities, which can be replicated across ECML member states.

Over the three years of the project, the team was able to strengthen professional networks by linking academic expertise on action research and good practice in the language classroom. The project has also designed a set of resources for teachers who would like to get into action research and also for teacher educators running courses on action research.

In the webinar the project team and colleagues involved in action research will speak about their experiences with action research:

During the webinar, attendees will have the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the content and some resources produced by the ARC project, to hear about action research from the perspectives of different educational and national contexts and to join in via a chat.

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Apr 2016

Enhancing Teacher Education through European Centre for Modern Languages Projects - "PluriMobil - Plurilingual and intercultural learning through mobility" - "Towards a Common European Framework of Reference for Languages Teachers - Action Research Communities for Language Teachers"ECML participation in an external event

The European Centre for Modern Languages project “Action research communities for language teachers” (ARC) has supported teachers in European classrooms in using action research as an essential tool for the development of reflective classroom practice - highlighting ways in which teachers can enhance their self-confidence and professionalism. The 90-minute webinar will provide an insight into the experiences gathered over the 3 years of the project (2016-18) and the present the results achieved.

The goal of ARC has been to contribute towards quality enhancement in the language classroom through the application of action research approaches by tapping into existing networks with a view to creating new learning communities, which can be replicated across ECML member states.

Over the three years of the project, the team was able to strengthen professional networks by linking academic expertise on action research and good practice in the language classroom. The project has also designed a set of resources for teachers who would like to get into action research and also for teacher educators running courses on action research.

In the webinar the project team and colleagues involved in action research will speak about their experiences with action research

During the webinar, attendees will have the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the content and some resources produced by the ARC project, to hear about action research from the perspectives of different educational and national contexts and to join in via a chat.

The conference brought together university lecturers in language teacher education from Switzerland and Germany and local teachers from different school levels. The thematic range of work presented in workshops was extremely broad.

The opportunity to open the conference with a talk on action research meant that we were able to demonstrate to a large audience how action research can contribute to the enhancement of language teaching, to show how action research functions in practice both at university and school level and to give insights into the work of the ARC project.

The main focus of this presentation was to demonstrate to an action research community how language teachers in different settings across the ECML countries can take first steps towards action research together. We presented some of the projects developed by participants of the ARC Workshop in November 2016 showing successes and challenges. It was the challenges that have led the project team to the development of the tools to “get teachers” into action research. The next CARN DACH meeting is to be held in Innsbruck in January 2019.

Hong Kong

In early March Christine Lechner held a talk at the Hong Kong Education University on Action Research in Initial Teacher Education & Continuing Professional Development in Austria and further Council of Europe countries. (Abstract)

Participants were lecturers and students at the HKIED, well informed about Lesson and Learning study approaches but less acquainted with further European action research practices. The talk focussed on the role and implications of action research at schools, in initial teacher education and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in Europe and specifically on the ARC project showing examples from network participants and also the project tools as being currently developed.

Narva (Estonia)

In March Renata Zanin presented the project at the International Research Workshop on Multilingual Education at European Borderlands (15 March 2018, Tartu University, Narva College, Narva Estonia). (Programme)

The paper presented the ARC project aims in general and in detail the pre-spiral for action research communities designed by the ARC-research team to support teachers in projecting and carrying out action research projects in their language classes with teachers of their school or of schools within their region in detail

The audience were lecturers and students from the University of Tartu, Narva College and language teachers of schools, as well as lecturers from other European Universities. They all showed great interest in the ARC-pre-spiral and in the project as a whole.

Liverpool, United Kingdom

In June Angela Gallagher-Brett presented on ARC at the Innovative Language Learning and Teaching Conference at the University of Liverpool (InnoConf 18 book of abstracts). This presentation focused on the importance of collaborative action research for language teacher empowerment and development. Angela demonstrated examples of projects developed by ARC participants and discussed the challenges experienced as well as the successes. She also explained the tools under development and highlighted the Action Research Spiral.

The audience were higher education language lecturers and tutors from UK universities who expressed considerable interest in the project tools and there has already been follow-up from the University of Liverpool where an action research training day for staff is now being planned.

The ARC team held a workshop in Reykjavík for Upper Secondary teachers of Danish, English, French, German, Norwegian and Icelandic as an L2 on 7-8 June 2018.

The workshop was organised by the Icelandic partner, Brynhildur Anna Ragnarsdottír, and the providers were Anita Konrad, Christine Lechner and Melanie Steiner from the Pedagogical University Tirol, Austria, and Tita Mihiau from the Centrul pentru formarea Continua in Limba Germana in Sibiu/Hermannstadt, Romania. The workshop was furthermore supported by local speakers, Dr. Hafdís Ingvarsdóttir and Hulda Karen Daníelsdóttír.

The aim was to deliver a worthwhile workshop on action research leading teachers to first action research steps whilst focussing on lesson planning on a specific theme. The theme chosen in accordance with dynamic CEFR developments was intercultural learning. Thus, besides an introduction to action research and information about the ARC project, there was an open session showing exemplary didactic materials on intercultural themes embedded in language learning.

The ARC Network Meeting was held at the European Centre for Modern Languages (ECML) on 3-4 May 2018. The event was co-ordinated by team members Angela Gallagher-Brett, Christine Lechner, Tita Mihaiu, Brynhildur Ragnarsdóttir, Anita Konrad, Marianne Jacquin and Renata Zanin and attended by 14 network members. The programme was designed around three cornerstones: presentations of action research projects developed over the past eighteen months by members of the ARC Network; input on activities around language learning and action research; discussions leading to tool development.

At the heart of the event were the network projects showing up how action research leads to expedient steps in the classroom through reflection, and these projects are to be published on the project homepage by the end of the year. Gunther Abuja from the Austrian Language Competence Centre spoke about the activities of the centre and the co-operation with the ECML; Franz Rauch from the Institute of Teaching and School Development at the University of Klagenfurt held a talk on the state-of-the-art of action research in Austria. Jim Murphy from the Centre for Distant Learning and Innovation (CDLI) in Canada spoke via skype on support for endangered languages.

The project team were extremely happy with the very constructive contributions to the tool development.

Project website "Action research communities for language teachers" (2016-2019): English - German

The EOL network meeting took place at the ECML in Graz on 20-21 March. The network meeting is a key step for each ECML project as it provides an opportunity to get direct feedback from different experts on tools, resources and developed approaches.

The team carefully selected the participants according to their expertise and geographical professional background. The network meeting brought together teachers from partner schools, school principals, institutional representatives and researchers. The team had also the pleasure to welcome Flore Schank, coordinator of the project Inspiring language learning and teaching in the early years, and Angela Gallagher-Bretts, team member of the project Action Research Communities.

The EOL project is in its third year of development. The concepts are consolidated, the working environment (European network, working platform, forum, etc.) is adapted to the needs. The tools have nearly all been set up, the work on resources has been launched and the research data collection is almost complete.
The drafting of the final publication, the development of the training platform, the labelling process and the dissemination activities (workshop, conference), as well as the training and consultancy offer still remain to be accomplished.

The overall structure of the network meeting was reflected in the seven steps of the EOL training path:

Step 3: Defining strategies built on case studies per group (Matrix questions);

Step 4: Browsing for resources;

Step 5: Testing the masterplan;

Step 6: Implementing EOL Online training pathways; and

Step 7: Collaborating.

Most enjoyable was the newly designed TrEOL game; playfully being able to analyse and to discover what is needed in order to create an environment that is supporting language learning and teaching. The main components are structures, people and culture.

The network meeting gave participants the opportunity to share reflections and analyse the project through four key entries:

modern languages as a key for human ecology (matrix);

using the card game “TrEOL”, a symbiotic, win-win approach to considering how modern languages can help address key challenges in education;

interconnections and their role to enhance all “synapsis” of school systems (memos, glossary, resources);

stakeholders’ and schools’ professional development (indicators, transfer tool and training platform).

If participants support the philosophy of the EOL project and see its benefits in their own working context, there are two types of critical feedback:

methodology: participants made proposals to make the personal and collective path on learning environments more progressive;

strategy: participants gave several suggestions on how to improve communication on EOL and to make the different tools more easily accessible.

In the end, the main elements of the project’s dissemination are: making publications user friendly, choosing a progressive approach and selecting easy access resources. The research part and the links to other ECML projects have been deeply appreciated by participants and should find a place in the final publication. The participants’ feedback is very encouraging and gives the team a great inspiration to finalise tools and resources.

The 2-day meeting (6-7 February 2018) at the ECML in Graz, Austria, was an excellent opportunity for the ECML project experts to discuss ongoing project developments with their fellow project coordinators.

They explored synergies between the different projects and exchanged good practice in project methodology. They discussed ongoing work on the development of their products and how to best disseminate the wide range of final results which will be achieved by the end of 2018 and 2019. They reflected on critical success factors to promote the achievements across and at the end of their respective project life cycles, to implement, to mediate, to possibly further develop them and to maximise impact in the various national and individual contexts. Finally they shared initial ideas for both the contents and the structure of the next ECML programme (2020-2023). They also highlighted the added value, both professional and personal, of coordinating ECML projects, seeing this as an opportunity to bridge policy, research and practice and contribute to making a real difference to quality language education in Europe.

The second project year was a year of building on the exciting progress made in 2016 and of producing the first collaborative outputs from participants’ engagement with ARC.

Action research projects started during the ARC workshop in November 2016. During the year colleagues across the ECML member states collaborated on their projects and there were intensive contacts in spring and summer. The visible result was the publication of the project abstracts on our website. Publication on the Padlet Wall continued and longer versions of the project descriptions are available there for Network partners.

Currently, we are planning the Network meeting in May 2018 and will be working together on a Moodle platform provided by the ECML.

At the same time, the project team is working on the project tools to facilitate discussions around action research to be presented, trialled and discussed at the Network meeting.

During the year there were several opportunities to disseminate the project and, at the same time, learn from ensuing discussions. ARC was presented at national workshops for language professionals in Switzerland, Iceland, Germany, Romania and Austria. There were also international conference presentations at the C.A.R.N. conference in Crete in October and the EAPRIL conference in Finland in November.

The project team is looking forward to interesting developments in 2018!

The expert meeting in November 2017 was a very good opportunity for ARC team members Angela Gallagher-Brett, Christine Lechner, Tita Mihaiu and Brynhildur Ragnarsdóttir and associate members Marianne Jacquin, Melanie Steiner and Renata Zanin to discuss further project steps and to plan the network meeting set for 3rd – 4th of May, 2018. Jim Murphy joined the meeting via Skype and David Newby supported us in a consulting role. During the meeting we also had the opportunity to visit the Austrian Languages Competence Centre (ÖSZ), where we were hosted by the Centre’s head Gunther Abuja.

The agenda for the May network meeting has been set and participants invited. Over the months leading up to the meeting participants will continue to work on action research projects to be presented at the meeting. At the meeting the project tools will be presented, trialled and completed.

The ARC team is also planning an ARC Workshop to be held in Iceland in June 2018. As in Hermannstadt/Sibiu (Romania), the focus will also be on how to lead teachers to action research and the topic theme will also be around the broad topic of intercultural learning in the language classroom.

Two members of the ECML’s Action research communities for language teachers (ARC) team from Austria and the United Kingdom attended the annual CARN conference at the University of Crete, Greece in October 2017 and presented on the latest developments in the ARC project.

We set out the aims and objectives of the project to conference participants who were mostly representatives from tertiary education from across Europe and beyond although there were also some local school teachers and students from Greek universities. We reported on the progress of all our language teachers and teacher educators from ECML countries who have been conducting collaborative action research projects in language teaching contexts across national and linguistic boundaries. The projects seemed to generate significant interest among members of our audience who also raised relevant and thought-provoking questions for us to consider as we move forward to the next phase of ARC.

The conference was a highly enjoyable event in a wonderful setting and provided us with a great opportunity to engage with action researchers from education and health working in a diverse range of contexts.

On the 19 May 2017 Christine Lechner and Renata Scaratti-Zanin had the opportunity to attend the Symposium to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Austrian Society for Languages Didactics and to present the ARC project ("Action research communities for language teachers") there. The lively and very intensive symposium hosted by the University of Vienna was attended by over 80 researchers, teachers and teacher educators as well as representatives from educational authorities and publishing houses from Austria, Germany, Italy and Hungary. The long abstract (*) on the ARC project (pp. 60-64) is included in the conference proceedings and describes the project framework, steps taken so far as well as the results from the workshop projects and ongoing developments.

The third ARC team meeting took place on the 6th and 7th of April, 2017. The aims of the meeting were to consolidate the work of the first year and to plan for the second part of the project.

The meeting provided the opportunity to discuss the results of the workshop held at the beginning of November 2016 and especially to look at the evolving Action Research projects planned there. We were extremely pleased that ten project reports have now been submitted and that the majority of the participants are still involved. A summary of the projects is soon to be published on the project homepage.

From the results of the workshop we were able to move on to the design of action research tools, which will be trialed over the next few months. At the network meeting to be held on the 3rd and 4th of May, 2018 this work will be presented and 14 participants of the workshop will be invited back to the network meeting to present the results of their ongoing action research.

ARC Presentation (Action research communities for language teachers) at the C.A.R.N. (Collaborative Action Research Network) D.A.CH Symposium in Linz

Three members of the ARC team from Austria and South Tyrol attended the symposium organised by the German-language branch Collaborated Action Research Network held in Linz in Upper Austria at the beginning of January, 2017.

Through the presentation we had the opportunity to explain the specific aims of the ARC Project to a public well informed about action research but mostly working in fields other than languages. We also had the opportunity to explain the project framework and introduce the ECML to colleagues from other fields.

On the one hand, we were able to report on the development of a trialled template for a three-day workshop on action research “for beginners” as held in Sibiu/Hermannstadt, Romania in October 2016.

On the other hand, we reported on the exciting collaborate action research projects currently being developed across the ECML countries as the result of the November 2016 workshop held at the ECML in Graz.

Does an explicit focus on critical thinking skills in our lesson planning and instruction enable students to engage in critical thinking? (with project partners from Albania, Netherlands, Malta, Latvia)

How can pupils’ language skills be enhanced by using news media and Facebook sharing in language teaching? (with project partners from Croatia and Iceland)

Breaking barriers: Can we identify barriers for professional learning English as a second language at university level? (with project partners from Armenia and France)

What is the role of the teacher in university student-centered activities? (with project partners from Finland and France)

Using the European Portfolio for Student Teachers of Languages (EPOSTL) as a self-reflection tool for improving pre- and in-service teachers’ competences. (with project partners from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Estonia and Greece)

Challenges of CLIL teachers
Intercultural competences through a student- based project. (with project partners from the Czech Republic and Poland)

CLIL in secondary vocational schools seen through students’ perspectives. (with project partners from “The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” and Serbia)

During the symposium a number of collaborate action research projects from various fields were presented and the ARC project fitted well into the framework. Our approach working together across Europe on a common action research project that is implemented in completely different national contexts is of innovative character.

Although C.A.R.N. is a well established network with roots in the 1970’s, the German-language branch is relatively new and currently undergoing a dynamic phase of growth and development. The symposium was an enjoyable event characterised by a supportive atmosphere in which all participants had the opportunity to learn from each other about different professional contexts.

The ECML project entitled “Action Research Communities for language teachers” aims to make techniques for action research widely available to language teachers across Europe by establishing a community of practice which brings together newly qualified and experienced teachers with teacher educators and university researchers. The project will strengthen professional language teaching networks by forging links between academic expertise on action research and good practice in language classrooms. Language teachers will be able to benefit from improved access to action research and to a diverse range of perspectives on teaching methodologies. In addition, this project will provide opportunities for language teachers to reflect on practice and to propose and test innovations while working collaboratively within a community of practice.

The project has just completed an exciting and successful first year, which began with an initial planning meeting of the project team in Graz in February 2016. This was followed by the first project workshop at the Pedagogical University Tirol in Innsbruck during the International Week in April 2016 where broad-ranging discussions on quality and enhancement in teaching at tertiary level across Europe took place. The workshop was held in conjunction with the coordinator of “Towards a Common Framework of Reference for Language teachers”. We then organised an action research workshop for German teachers in Sibiu/Hermannstadt (Romania) in October 2016 which introduced the participating teachers to action research tools and provided them with the opportunity to plan and develop collaborative action research projects to be carried out in their own classrooms. The teachers are currently trialling the lessons and writing reports on the action research process. Finally, a workshop for teachers and teacher trainers/educators from across Europe was held in Graz in November 2016. Here participants shared inspiring stories and examples from their own teaching, reflected on action research approaches in different European contexts and also gained an insight from a Canadian expert into the vital contribution of distance and online language teaching in providing access to languages for rural communities. Participants subsequently identified their own action research interests and formulated collaborative group proposals for a set of pilot classroom projects. Groups are responsible for reporting on their projects in March 2017. The workshop was greatly enjoyed and we look forward to seeing and disseminating the outcomes of this work. It is already clear that an impressive level of activity is underway and that the collaborative approach is benefitting those teachers who are relative newcomers to action research.

The project team will now move on to exploring and developing synergies and links with other ECML projects and will be producing a set of guidelines for action research networking strategies and formats for training courses to improve classroom practice by linking quality strategies to practical action research approaches. Ultimately, project outcomes will include the production of action research tools which help to improve the quality of language teaching and foster dialogue between teachers in different sectors and evidence which shows the reciprocal relationship between practice and research. We also hope to demonstrate the benefits of action research to teachers and learners by creating a set of success stories in different languages and to create European models for peer learning activities which can be implemented at school/national level.

The ECML's e-newsletter provides up-to-date news about the ECML (events, projects, resources), its partners and other relevant sectors of the Council of Europe. It focuses on language education and national developments in the member states and beyond.

The Action Research Communities for Language Teachers workshop was held at the ECML in Graz on the 10-11 November 2016 run by the ARC team - Christine Lechner, Angela Gallagher-Brett, Tita Mihaiu, Brynhildur Ragnarsdóttir, Renata Zanin & Jim Murphy. We were very pleased to welcome 31 participants from the ECML member states.

The workshop was the first open event of the project and as such the aims were to open the project and invite participants to join us in developments. Discussions on action research as a way to enhance quality in education were opened through activities such as an analytic discourse, a dialogue sheet to initiate discussions about quality in education, an action-research city walk. There was input on action research in national contexts as well as on distance learning.

The results of the workshop are mini-action research projects that are currently being trialled across the ECML member states with final reports expected for the Spring. We are very much looking forward to exciting mini-action research project results.

Interesting completed projects will be published on the project website and the most successful presented at the Network Meeting to be held on 3-4 of May 2018.

Members of the Action Research Communities for language teachers ran a workshop for teachers of German in Hermannstadt/Sibiu from 20th to 22nd of October, 2016. The aim was to introduce teachers to an action research way of thinking, to understand the benefits of action research for the enhancement of their classroom practice.

The content theme of the seminar was “Teaching about the culture of a target-country language in the language classroom: Austria”. The workshop opened with activities to exchange and compare knowledge, beliefs and opinions about Austria. The next stage was an analytic discourse based on posters made by the teachers to visualise a typical lesson on a cultural aspect in their German class.

The first day was concluded by general information about the “Action Research Communities for language teachers” and also by showing what the European Centre for Modern Languages (ECML) can offer to teachers of languages. It was important to ask for the participant feedback on what they had found interesting on the first day and what their hopes were for the continuation. Clearly, the teachers were keen to get concrete input that they could use at school. We were very pleased that they had found the exchange and getting to know each other professionally at some depth through the analytic discourse useful.

The second day opened with input on action research followed by an opportunity for the teachers to look at materials on Austria and approaches that they might use. They worked in groups moving from station to station. At the end of the second day, the teachers started to think about themes that they might work on and appropriate groups.

The third day opened with input on Learning Study as a co-operative form of action research and on an activity to generate shared visions for lessons on aspects of culture. The participating teachers planned in groups to hold lessons in their own classrooms and to write a joint report following individual experiences. The plans were shared through short presentations showing intentions and expectations.

We ended the workshop with a “crumple-paper” evaluation: “Lots of fun - using the methods presented will be worthwhile – we will carry on working together”.

This workshop will be an excellent opportunity for 39 experts to open up this ECML project (2016-2019) for ideas on action research and to bring together action research initiatives as practised across 32 European countries. The event aims to provide incentives to continue with action research and to discover new paths together. Over two days, the participants will be working on generating mini-action research projects to be carried out over the next few months with the support of international colleagues.

Envisaged project outputs: Guidelines for action research and for networking strategies towards quality enhancement in language teaching; a practical guide to action research for teachers and teacher educators; piloted models of trialled course units; a set of success stories in several languages; an online platform with a bank of resources.

Action Research Communities for Language Teachers is a tremendous opportunity to bring together language teachers and teacher educators interested in developing their practice through action research. ARC will be a meeting point where action research experiences in the ECML member states can be exchanged, newer approaches discovered and paths opened. ARC takes inspiration from previous ECML projects on action research and quality and also action research cultures in different countries.

The project will run from January 2016 until December 2018 and the team members are Christine Lechner (Pedagogical University Tirol, Austria), Angela Brett-Gallagher (University of Southampton, United Kingdom), Tita Mihiau (Pedagogical Institute, Hermannstadt, Romania) and Brynhildur Ragnarsdottir (University of Reyjavik, Iceland).

The ARC workshop at the ECML will take place on 10-11 November 2016 for colleagues from ECML member states open to enhancing teaching practice through action research. The aim is to bring together experienced colleagues and those embarking upon a teaching career. Those interested are invited to take up contact with the ECML National Nominating Authority in their country so that they can be considered for participation in the corresponding project workshop.

The first expert meeting was held at the end of February 2016. The participants were able to become better acquainted and to exchange on professional views on action research and look at action research practices in our national settings.

On 20-22 October members of the project team will be working with German teachers in Hermannstadt on enhancing teaching “Intercultural Learning in the German classroom” through action research methodology.